“You can see it when the clowns enter the room and leave the room. The child is different," explained Dr. David Podeszwa, Children’s Medical Center of Dallas.

Podeszwa said the clowns are often paged when a child won’t eat or needs a shot.

"It’s a way of distracting them. It’s a way of putting them at ease,” he said.

“Dr. Slappy” and “Dr. Monday” are both veterans of the Ringling Brothers Circus. Once a month, the clowns meet for an "emotional hygiene" session, where they talk about the difficult emotions they encounter while working with sick kids.

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